Wrench



(L1A. WRIGHT.V

. WRENCH.

PPHCATION FILED APR.23| 1919.

, '1,320,81 5. famed Nov. 4, 1919.

CHARLES A. WRIGHT, OF BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

WRENCH.

Patented Nov. 4, 1919.

Application filed April 23, 1919. Serial No. 292,020.

To all 'whom t may concern.' I

Be it known that I, CHARLES A. WRIGHT, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Brockton, in the county of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wrenches, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to wrenches Iand particularly to wrenches having flexible clamping or grasping members and the present invention has for its object the provision of novel means whereby the. flexible member is pressed or forced against the object to be wrenched, as the force applied to the handles of the wrench increases, thereby insuring that the frictional engagement of the flexible member with the object to be wrenched is sufficient to prevent slipping of the engaging surfaces of the Wrench.

A further object of this invention is to provide novel means whereby the flexible member may be adjusted to take up any `slack and whereby it may be held at di'erent positions of adjustment, the said invention furthermore contemplating the provision of novel means whereby the flexible member may be relieved of its tension upon movement reverse to that in which the wrenching action is' effected.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, one embodiment of theinvention is illustrated l by the accompanying drawing and the construction will be disclosed in connection with the detailed description and claims.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and in which- Figure 1 illustrates a view in elevation, partly in section of a wrench embodying the invention; and

Fig. 2 illustrates a section on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

In these drawings 5 and 6 denote hollow handles each having jaws 7 and 8 secured to them respectively as by rivets such as 9. The said jaws are pivotally connected by a pivot 10 so that the handles may .oscillate and the jaws are preferably serrated on their surfaces which engage the member to be wrenched. In connection with the jaws,

I employ a flexible member 11, preferably a chain which may be adjusted in one of the handles as in the handle 5 by drawing it longitudinally of the handle, so that the flexible member may `engage a rod, pipe or the like 12, to be turned, and the 'said flexible member is secured at diiferent positions of adjustment by the set screw 13. The handle 5 has a clip or collar 14 on it and a toothed link 15 is pivoted to the collar and extends through a slot 16 in the handle 6. The outer end of the link is pivoted to a rod 17 which slides in the handle 6 and has its end remote from the link connected to the liexible member 11 so that the motion of the 1god 17 is communicated to the flexible mem- The handle 6 has an abutment 18 for a spring 19 which encircles the rod 17 and the said spring has its opposite end bearing against a shoulder 20` of the rod so that the spring operates to force the rod 17 longitudinally of the handle and outwardly toward the jaw 8. The tendency therefore of the spring is to move the `iexible member so that it will relieve the tension of the flexible member on the pipe or rod 12, but this tend: ency is overcome when force is applied to the handle 5, since the link 15 has a tendency to.force the rod 17 away from the jaw 8 and to pull on the flexible member so that it will exert greater pressure on the rod or pipe 12.

It is possible to prevent the link from operating on the rod when that is desirable and in order to accomplish the said result, I provide a collar 21 which may slide into en- Igagement with one -of the teeth of the link 15 and thereby the parts may be held so that the tension on the spring 19 is increased or diminished according to the requirements. Y

The construction, operation and advantages will, it is thought, be understood from the foregoing description, but it is to be understood that various changes may be resorted to in the proportions and details of the invention without departing from the spirit thereof, as covered by the annexed claims.

I claim j 1. In a wrench, hollow handles having jaws, means for pivotally connecting the members whereby the handles are oscillatable, a flexible member extending into the handles, means for holding the fiexible member at different positions of adjustment, a rod slidable in one of the handles t0 which the flexible member is connected, and means associated with the other handle and exerting force on the member to which the IieXible member is connected, whereby the movement of the handle is communicated' to the flexible member.

2. ln a Wrench, hollow handles pvotally connected, a jaw carried by a handle, a ieXible member movable in the handles and adapted to eoaet with the jaw, means on one of the handles for hol-ding the flexible member at different positions of adjustment, a rod sldable in the other handle and connected to the flexible member, and a conneetion between said rod and the opposite handle for communicating motion to the said rod.

3. In a Wrench, hollow handles pivotally connected, a jaw carried by a handle, a fieX- ble member movable in theV handles and adapted to eoact with the jaw, means on one of the handles for holding theflexible memberat different positions of adjustment, a rod slidable in the other'handle and Connected to the flexible member, a connection between said rod and the opposite handle for communieating motion to the said rod, and means operating in conjunction with the rod for releasing the iieXble member from the object which it engages.

CHARLES A. 'WRIGH Copies of this patent may 'be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Gommissioner of Patents,

Washington, ID. C. l 

